Pharmaceutical company Bayer planning to oust bosses, asks workers to ‘self-organize’
New Delhi: German pharmaceutical company Bayer, which is facing a difficult time, is undergoing structural changes to address corporate bureaucracy and foster innovation, as reported by Business Insider.
CEO Bill Anderson introduced the “Dynamic shared ownership” approach to empower employees and enhance decision-making.
Anderson expressed concerns about the rigid hierarchy within the company, saying, “We hire highly educated, trained people, and then we put them in these environments with rules and procedures and eight layers of hierarchy. Then we wonder why big companies are so lame most of the time” in an interview with Business Insider earlier this year.
Bayer, with nearly 100,000 employees, aims to revamp its organisational structure to improve efficiency and flexibility. The company plans to simplify its extensive rulebook, which currently spans over 1,300 pages, and reduce the number of middle managers to streamline processes.
In a recent meeting in New Jersey, employees were encouraged to self-organise and pitch ideas in a collaborative setting. The firm remains discreet about the exact number of managers to be let go, but reports suggest a significant restructuring in the US operations.
Bayer anticipates cost savings of approximately 2 billion euros from these changes. Despite these efforts, Bayer’s shares have plummeted by over 50 per cent in the past year, reflecting financial challenges with a debt of around 34 billion euros.
The company’s commitment to fostering a culture of innovation and patient-centric approach remains unchanged amidst the restructuring. Anderson’s vision for a more agile and autonomous workforce signals a shift towards a more collaborative and efficient corporate environment.
Source – ETHealth World
